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L-r, Tracy den Blaauwen, Ray Horn, Lucas Macklin, James Kveton and Colleen McDonald
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Accountancy Chapter Places in Nat'l Finals

July 11, 2006

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MACOMB, IL – A team comprised of students from Western Illinois University’s Student Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants (SCIMA) recently placed in the national finals of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) Student Case Competition.

The four finalist teams presented before judges at the 87th Annual IMA Conference and Exposition in Las Vegas last month. Each team received an award of $3,000 from the IMA.

According to Diana McCabe, WIU faculty adviser, to qualify the teams prepared a
15-minute video presentation, “Creating a Lean Enterprise: The Case of the Lebanon Gasket Company.” The student teams were then asked to respond to a series of questions related to “lean accounting,” addressing issues such as capacity planning, aligning employee incentives with the lean goals and making product mix decisions.

The tapes, 13 total, were evaluated on the basis of technical content and presentation skills by judges selected from industry and academia across the country. In addition to the Western team, the other finalists included James Madison University, North Carolina State University and University of Southern Indiana. Since 1993, Western has had eight finalist teams, with two teams placing first in the nation.

“Our students devoted many hours to ensure their research and presentation was highly effective,” McCabe added. “This type of competition is invaluable when it comes to developing the students’ analytical, teamwork and communication skills.”

Members of the WIU team include James Kveton, a junior from Sandwich (IL); Colleen McDonald, a senior from Oak Park (IL); Ray Horn, a junior from Oakford (IL); Lucas Macklin, a senior from Dixon (IL); and Tracy den Blaauwen, a senior from East Moline (IL).

Posted By: Darcie Shinberger (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing